Windows 2000 was released by Microsoft in February 2000 for business systems, followed by Windows ME in September 2000 for home users, and both shared this logon chime. As the operating systems were replaced by Windows XP in 2001, the sound survived in online archives, retro computing videos and soundboards alongside the classic error sound. Its continued use comes from nostalgia for the Y2K computing era and from creators using familiar system sounds as instant shorthand for starting up, logging in or returning to an older digital world.
About this sound
The Windows 2000 and ME startup logon sound from Microsoft, a short melodic chime people use for retro PC, nostalgia and tech meme edits and videos.
This is the logon startup chime that played when Windows 2000 and Windows ME finished booting to the desktop. It is a bright, layered electronic melody lasting about five seconds, with soft synth pads, a gentle rising motif and a calm, optimistic finish. Unlike the shorter Windows 95 and XP tones, it feels spacious and unhurried. Hearing it instantly signals a system ready for work and triggers strong nostalgia for early 2000s home and office computers, CRT monitors, dial up connections and the slower pace of computing from that era.
